Two primary schools in Sheffield where pupils make exceptional progress have been hailed as some of the best in the country.

Lowfield Primary School, in Lowfield, and St Anns Grove Primary, in Heeley, have received letters from school standards minister Nick Gibb praising the level of progress pupils make in reading, writing and maths.

Mr Gibb said in his letter that their key stage two results rank them both in the top two per cent of school in England in terms of the progress pupils make between key stage one and the end of key stage two.

Headteacher at St Anns Grove Primary, Sam Fearnehough said: "I am incredibly proud to have received the letter and want to thank our children, staff, parents and governors for their commitment to Anns Grove.

"Everyone here goes the extra mile every day to make learning exciting and relevant to our children's needs.

"We have an exceptional team that makes Anns Grove an amazing place to work and learn."

At Lowfield Primary, 33 different languages are spoken by pupils, 83 per cent of children speak English as an additional language and it has a high number of youngsters who join and leave the school throughout the year.

Headteacher Christopher Holder said: " I am really pleased that the hard work of our school has been recognised and that the local community continues to have a school it can be rightly proud of.”

Mr Gibb revealed the schools' accolade after pupils’ results in the national key stage two tests in English, maths and science were published in December.

In his letter he wrote: "We want to ensure that every child has the necessary fluency in reading, writing and mathematics to prepare them for a successful secondary education and beyond, and your school has provided this.